The invention is directed to a monolithically integrated temperature sensor for power semiconductor components wherein a temperature sensor is monolithically integrated on a semiconductor member together with a vertical power semiconductor structure.
A temperature sensor of this type is known, for example, from a contribution to the publication "TEMPFET: Schritt zum idealen Leistungshalbleiterschalter" in the company publication Siemens Components 27 (1989), No. 6, pages 228-232. What is involved there is a temperature sensor that is integrated with a power MOS-FET in multi-chip or hybrid technology. Beyond this, one also finds there the teaching that there is also the possibility of a monolithically integrated temperature sensor.